CAPT Danielle C. DeFant

Past Commanding Officer, USS Lake Erie (CG 70)

15 August 2022 Danielle C. DeFant is a native of Oceanside, California and lived at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina until she enlisted in the Navy in 1991.  She completed enlisted tours onboard USS HUNLEY (AS 31) and USS SHENANDOAH (AD 44), advancing to Yeoman Second Class and earning her Enlisted Surface Warfare Specialist qualification.

Danielle graduated from Old Dominion University through the Enlisted Education Advancement Program (EEAP) in 1998 with a Bachelor of Science in Political Science and was commissioned through Officer Candidate School, Pensacola, FL, in May 1999.

Following commissioning, she reported on board USS VELLA GULF (CG 72) as Damage Control Assistant (DCA) in June 2000.  She reported to USS SAMUEL B. ROBERTS (FFG 58), homeported in Mayport, FL in August 2002, where she served as Auxiliaries Officer until March 2004.

Captain DeFant reported to Washington DC in April 2004, where she served as Customer Advocate and BRAC Coordinator, Naval Support Activity, Washington and completed a Master’s in International Policy and Practice (MIPP) from The George Washington University.  

Upon her departure from Washington, DC, and completion of Department Head training in Newport, RI, she reported to USS CHAFEE (DDG 90) as Chief Engineer until November 2008.  She completed another tour as Chief Engineer onboard USS PRINCETON (CG 59) in San Diego, CA from March 2009 to September 2010.  She was selected as Defense Fellow and was assigned to the office of Senator Jack Reed, Rhode Island.  After completing a Global War on Terrorism Support Assignment at US European Command’s Interagency Planning (ECJ9), Danielle completed a tour as the Navy’s Officer Promotion and Policy Planner in OPNAV N1.

In September 2014, she reported to USS PAUL HAMILTON (DDG 60) as the Executive Officer and assumed command in March 2016, where she served until December 2017.  Her post-command shore tour was as the Current Operations Officer at Expeditionary Strike Group SEVEN/Amphibious Forces SEVENTH Fleet, in Okinawa, Japan from January 2018 until December 2019.  Her latest tour was as the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy’s Global Force Management specialist in Washington, DC.